Circle Kei Motors logoCIRCLE KEI MOTORS

How It Works

Seven steps from a Japanese auction floor to your Hawaiʻi driveway. You relax — we're on it.

  1. STEP 1

    You tell us what you want

    Browse our inventory or start a custom order. A small deposit secures your vehicle or your sourcing spot — then we get to work.

    White kei van at a Japanese dealer lot
  2. STEP 2

    We hit the auction floor

    In person, in Nagoya. We read the auction sheets in Japanese, crawl under the vehicle, start the engine, and only bid when it's right.

    Rows of vehicles at a Japanese auto auction
  3. STEP 3

    We handle all paperwork

    Export certificate, deregistration, certified translations, customs documentation — done for you, correctly, the first time.

    Evening street in Nagoya, Japan
  4. STEP 4

    Across the Pacific

    Your vehicle rolls onto a RoRo vessel in Japan and sails direct to Honolulu. We track it the whole way.

    RoRo cargo vessel crossing the Pacific Ocean
  5. STEP 5

    Customs cleared

    A licensed Honolulu customs broker handles entry, duty and CBP. 25+ year vehicles enter under the federal exemption.

    Kei van on a Hawaiʻi coastal road
  6. STEP 6

    Registered & road ready

    Hawaiʻi title, safety inspection, plates. When you get the keys, it's already legal and ready to drive.

    Kei truck on a countryside road at sunset
  7. STEP 7

    Delivered to your driveway

    We bring it to you. Beach run, farm run, town run — she's all yours, brah.

    Kei van with a surfboard on a Hawaiʻi road

Total time: about 10–14 weeks door to door

PhaseTypical time
Sourcing & auction win1–3 weeks
Export paperwork & port delivery2–3 weeks
Ocean crossing (Japan → Honolulu)3–4 weeks
Customs, registration & safety check2–3 weeks
Delivery to your driveway≈ 1 week

Transparency note

Vehicles 25+ years old are federally exempt from NHTSA/EPA import restrictions. Kei vans and Jimnys are fully street legal in Hawaiʻi. Flatbed Kei trucks are best suited for farm and local-road use — we'll always tell you straight what a vehicle is and isn't good for.